Nature_and_Environment.56

Wilderness

I just returned from "car-camping" (not backpacking) in what I later
learned was designated wilderness (Chama River Canyon Wilderness -
"http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?
fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&wname=Chama%20River%20Canyon%20Wilderness"
There was evidence of cattle grazing in this delicate area with
little-to-no topsoil and a very low annual precipitation. So I
thought to find out just what "designated wilderness" is. It isn't
what I had previously thought. Some wilderness areas
were "wilderness" (roadless, mineless, non-grazed, etc.) when they
were declared, but, surprisingly to me, mining, grazing, and other
high-ish impact activities can continue in some designated wilderness
areas.
http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=manageIssues
Should we treat designated wildnerness differently than we presently
do?

virtually, to me it seems, that all our lessons must be learnt the
hard way. when does hardly anyone these days pay attention to those
wise little voices? Calves in the darkness.
how fortunate then do we sometimes have the fortune to receive
an individual or more that advise strongly to the right directions in
crisis.
not military.
no.
something else.
people say i'm optimistic.
maybe that is truth.
but it's worth it to hope.

Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as important as Yellowstone,
activist says President Bush on Thursday is expected to announce
plans to create the world's largest marine protected area  a group
of remote Hawaiian islands that cover 84 million acres and are home
to 7,000 species of birds, fish and marine mammals, at least a
quarter of which are unique to Hawaii.

The proposed sanctuary encompasses the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands,
which conservationists describe as the most intact tropical marine
region under U.S. jurisdiction.

"This an unprecedented win for endangered Hawaiian monk seals, green
sea turtles, black-footed albatrosses, tiger sharks, the incredible
reef corals in these waters, the people of Hawaii and all Americans,
now and in generations to come," Elliott Norse, president of the
Marine Conservation Biology Institute, said in a statement ahead of
the announcement. "Its the start of a new era of protecting places
in the sea before theyre degraded beyond recognition. In my opinion,
this is the best thing President Bush has done for the
environment."

{Cafe_Improvements_and_Feedback.5.543}: James River Martin
{rivertree} Thu, 19 Apr 2007 12:47:37 EDT (33 lines)
Do we have anyone at the moment who is acting as "Cafe Manager"?
I'd like to ask a question of all in the Cafe.: Should the Cafe
implement a new forum (or sub-forum) titled "The Great Outdoors"? It
would be a general forum or sub-forum on all sorts of outdoor
recreational activities, camping, canoeing, backpacking, horseback
riding, mountaineering, bicycling, etc.... Here, we could discuss
techniques, skills, equipment, know-how, places/locations, stories of
our journeys and experiences, etc....
Were it to be a sub-forum, it could fit in a number of places, such
as in {Sports} or in {Nature_and_Environment}. It should be pointed
out that neither of these two existing forums are a perfect or ideal
fit, unless a sub-forum were created. This is so because N&E is
devoted -- in its sub-title -- to socio-political issues and
activism, not to recreation, while {Sports} is devoted mostly to
competitive team sports and non-trem competitive sports like golf.
Outdoor recreational activities, on the other hand, are typically
very non-competitive, and more recreational.
Some background on this discussion can be found in {Sports.220.1-}. I
think it would be good if we could announce to the wider Cafe
community that a discussion of this proposal is underway, and provide
a space for all to offer input.
==================================================================
{Sports.220.16-}: River:
I might do that, but I'd like to find out what people in the Cafe
think of forming a new "Great Outdoors" forum, first. I'm at least
51% decided that having a "Great Outdoors" forum would be the better
choice between these two. What do you think?

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